


Always Move Forward

by Agrippa



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe! Dead by Daylight, Blood and Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Developing Relationship, Dubious Morality, Fear, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Psychological Torture, Temporary Character Death, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-29
Updated: 2017-11-29
Packaged: 2019-02-08 05:58:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12858237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Agrippa/pseuds/Agrippa
Summary: Kyungsoo would tell Baekhyun to go- they'd been in this sick game long enough to know that sometimes… You had to rationalize. Had to be selfish, or risk losing your own life. If there wasn't an 80% chance of success, it by default wasn't worth playing hero.But then again, none of those circumstances had involved Chanyeol, had they?





	Always Move Forward

**Author's Note:**

> Dead by Daylight AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What defines reality? Is it just that you can taste and touch. Feel the pain as the blade slides in between your ribs. Taste the iron tinged flavour of blood in your mouth and the smell of death as the darkness takes you? Is it hope that drives you on? Hoping that the next time will bring your actual death, or hope that the next exit reveals a way back home. I yearn for some kind of escape. Be it death or life.   
> -Benedict Baker

He found the end he so desperately desired, dreamed of for an age, albeit not in a form he'd ever imagined possible.

 

Still, beggars couldn't be choosers.

 

It manifested as him being horribly lost- in more ways than just one. He reasoned that he'd been _lost_ for some time already, long before he'd stumbled off into nothingness, never having assumed for even a second that he'd never again resurface. Perhaps he'd been sober. Perhaps he'd been inebriated- the days had long ago melded together, a clear mind a Faraway dream.

 

It didn't matter, anyways. _Nothing_ really mattered.

 

Exhausted, and confused, at some point even the final vestiges of consciousness left him- his eyes slipping shut as his heartbeat slowed, brain, previously loud, racing thoughts whirring to a halt. He'd deal with the absolute _mess_ he'd made out of his life in the morning, probably.

 

He opened his eyes, and for the first time, he woke up in a world that didn't belong to him.

 

But there was no pain, no chorus of cries and shouts ricocheting off of every square inch of the inside of his skull, no throbbing in his brain, no heavy pressure building behind his eyes and making his _teeth_ ache _._ Perhaps even more perplexing, his thoughts were heard, were _understood_ with an almost startling clarity.

 

He allowed his head to loll from side to side to take in what he could of his surroundings- but to no avail, as it was only trees, upon trees and dense underbrush wherever he looked. Heavy fog clung low in the air, thick and stubborn, as howling wind whipped through what he could only assume to be a forest.

 

Although muffled and distorted, a scream alerted him in the near distance, somewhere within the vicinity, and his eyes widened a fraction- getting up onto his forearms as something that felt a lot like fear overtook him, alongside the innate sense to _move_. Before he got the chance to do so, rustling caught his attention- coming from somewhere in front of him, louder, and louder as the sound of feet pounding into the earth rose along with it. Running, he registered dimly- someone was running towards him.

 

They were getting nearer, but it became apparent to him that he had heard them long before he should have been able to. In fact, if he quieted his breathing, and _listened,_ he could hear _everything_ . The sound of crows taking off deeper into the woods, the sound of someone's heavy panting as they ran, exhaustion taking its toll, the low hum and clanging sound of something mechanical nearby- or perhaps just amplified. Everything _sounded_ closer than it was. Clearer than it should have.

 

Disoriented, he shook his head firmly as though to clear it, dragging himself backwards into taller grasses as he watched. As he waited.

 

Someone broke through the trees and into the tiny clearing- eyes wide, face pale- head turning as his eyes darted around- closing for all of five seconds before shooting open again the second what sounded dangerously similar to the heavy thudding of a heartbeat found his ears.

 

“Fuck fuck fuck fuck-” He began, slowing his movements purposefully as he crept forward- directly into the newcomer already occupying the location.

 

But he didn't seem even remotely fazed to see him- just glancing down at him as he crawled next to his mostly prone body- hushing him silently, finger over his lips. The heartbeat got louder, got closer- picking up and _racing as_ heavy feet sprinted across the same ground that had just been covered.  It was only _then_ that it occurred to him that this _heartbeat_ did not belong to the person crouching over him, getting in as close, as low as possible.

 

He held his breath, and he in turn instinctively did the same thing- the same thing he'd always done. Observe, and then repeat. Repeat, so that he wouldn't stand out. So that no one could differentiate between the way he processed things or his peers processed things.

 

Only this situation was a lot more dire, and unquestionably called for him to mirror the other man's actions. Repeat, so that he would stay alive, his mind supplied.

 

Seconds later, a second... Humanoid shape came into view- something that had perhaps once born resemblance to a man, but could scarcely even be called a _human_ now. Bits of metal protruding from his arms and shoulders- the remnants of what appeared to be massive hooks, narrowed piping and shards of scraps- littered sparsely, but most definitely there, gleaming in the dimmed moonlight. Large, deep gashes marred his abnormally grey flesh- appearing _cracked_ and broken. Hardly even skin. Blood mantled his forearms, partially encrusted; fresh, and old, deep maroon bleeding, dripping downwards and seeping into the dirt beneath his feet.

 

A grotesque mask adorned his face- hard to make out in the absence of light and through the haze of fog, but the presence of what resembled sharp, pointed teeth was made apparent- pulled into a eternal, wicked, and mocking smile. Miniscule holes marked the eyes, there for appearance over the necessity to see. It resembled both bone and treebark, the unnatural shape disproving the idea of it being entirely constructed out of a human skull, although the cracked, hinged jaw looked strikingly similar.

 

In one hand, a large, bloodied and rusted cleaver. In the opposite, a closed beartrap. Dark, rubberized overalls dressed his broad, hulking form, decorated with spatters of what appeared to be dried blood, alongside mud and dirt. Both his heartbeat and breathing were heard as though they were his own- ragged, wheezing. Inhuman.

 

He stepped forward, pausing to listen the same way the nameless man had just _moments_ before, seemingly needing to turn his entire body with his head to even take in his surroundings, neck oddly stiff. Another step. And another, and his heart raced in tandem with the _thing_ just a foot away- body and mind _screaming_ at him to move, to run.  A bright, _eerie_ light seemed to emanate from him, bathing everything immediately before him in bright, luminous red.

 

He couldn't see where his feet were placed, but he had a distinct feeling that the red, glowing… _Stain_ was near. Had a distinct feeling that when it reached him, it would already be too late to escape.

 

What sounded like an explosion rang out from afar, and just as quickly as the heartbeat pounding in his head had amplified, it waned before vanishing entirely.

 

He gasped sharply, panting for breath, alarm clear, bringing up one hand to wipe away the sweat at his brow, opening his mouth to speak, to question, to say _something_ , anything to solidify that this was his reality.

 

“Alright, let's move,” interrupted him before he got the chance- Very quickly drawing the conclusion that now most _definitely_ wasn't the time to chat idly, let alone let loose the flurry of rapidly increasing inquiries now nagging at his mind.

 

So he moved. Shadowing the man who seemed to at least have an inkling as to what he was meant to accomplish here.

 

He tailed his newfound guide, alert, eyes narrowed, darting around the area in an attempt to properly observe his location. They broke through the trees to follow a well-travelled dirt path, stacks of meticulously chopped and bundled lumber lining it inconsistently. Not far away stood walls, barricades constructed primarily out of logs- seeming to be found in small sets, the mechanical clanging he'd heard just a short while before seeming to come from behind one of them. A peek into one of the large windows, large enough for a human to most definitely climb through, revealed nothing of importance.

 

“Hiding places,” his guide whispered lowly, voice soft, quiet, but he picked up the words effortlessly and without strain. He'd never possessed exceptional hearing, but in this very recently discovered location, that had never seemed to be the case. He nodded, but otherwise remained silent.

 

“Before we get any further, what's your name?” His escort _finally_ inquired, prompting his almost relieved response, “Chanyeol,” He cleared his throat, voice rough with disuse, “Park Chanyeol- you?”

 

“Just Baekhyun is fine,” a minute pause, “We need to hurry,” he implored, just before breaking out into a light sprint. Chanyeol didn't think to ask why, just nodded dumbly and followed suit.

 

The ran past a partially maintained log cabin along the way, windows and interior dark, just as eerie and foreboding as the rest of the forest, meeting a growing trail of blood shortly thereafter- fresh, and viscous, dyeing the grass and dirt a vibrant red. Chanyeol avoided looking at the ground, avoided looking anywhere other than in front of him.

 

But even pools of coagulated blood didn't equate to the site that greeted him when they reached the edge of the area, fenced off, but even the fence was bordered by trees.

 

“What the fuck,” He hissed, mouth falling open and pupils blown wide, a chill racing down his spine.

 

It was a person they reached, a man- short in stature, and seemingly on the verge of unconsciousness. A man, with blood running down his temple from his dark nest of unkempt hair, and his shirt soaked in red, bleeding out from the deep wound in his shoulder.

 

A heavy meathook pierced his flesh, protruding visibly from the ripped open skin near his collarbone, and through the front of his stained shirt, keeping him suspended above the ground. The scene was grotesque at best, the man barely even alive, dark claw-like, spidery arms starting to form from above, encircling his upper half, nearly complete.

 

Once more, Baekhyun remained largely unaffected, beyond a slight grimace- darting forward to lift the other man up and off of the hook, Chanyeol swallowing dryly and stepping in to help just before Baekhyun managed to lift him off entirely. The man stumbled, Baekhyun supporting him until they made it into some taller grasses nearer to the fence, prying what appeared to be a medkit from the other man's hand before beginning to work- slowly patching him up, the blood remaining on his form, but the bleeding from his multitude of wounds ceasing.

 

“Park, get over here. We need to hurry and heal him up, the ki- the _thing_ you saw earlier is probably headed towards us now.”

 

And he fumbled, but did his best- job sloppy, mediocre if one was being generous, but the wounds, somehow, closed and disappeared. The nameless man slowly but surely came back to himself, plagued by exhaustion, but no longer blinded by pain, nor dangerously close to death.

 

“How do you know that?” Chanyeol frowned, glancing around, but seeing no indication of any _thing_ coming their way.

 

“Because he just broke the generator dae was working on, and he knows we just got Soo off of the hook.”

 

“O….kay.”

 

Baekhyun and _Soo_ each cast him a long, indecipherable look, before their own gazes met, Baekhyun just offering a minute shrug of his shoulders, the other man seemingly shaking his head in disbelief. Chanyeol didn't have the capacity to let it bother him right then.

 

“Let’s split- it will allow us to cover more ground and get the gennies done faster. We only need three more patched up,” Baekhyun resolved, Chanyeol's eyes widening with the revelation that they were intending on leaving him to his own.

 

But Baekhyun seemed to catch his distress, huffing impatiently before he beckoned for him to follow his lead, _Soo_ already far ahead of them.

 

As suggested, they split up, Chanyeol following behind Baekhyun once more, jolting himself when he disturbed a small group of crows by jogging past them- cawing loudly as they flew away. He held a hand over his heart, closing his eyes for a few seconds to brace himself, before speeding up to close the distance between them again.

 

The familiar mechanical clanging sounded again nearby, Baekhyun glancing from side to side to take in his surroundings as he crept towards it- cautious. Careful. It was loud, as though struggling to operate- akin to an engine failing, with the ignition trying to make it start. It took him a few seconds, when it came into view, for Chanyeol to recognize what it was- a broken down generator, emitting sparks, sabotaged.

 

Baekhyun knelt in front of it and began to work, reaching inside.

 

“I'll need a toolbox if I want to finish this quickly- make yourself useful. There's a chest somewhere near the house- go there, search it, and come straight back. Make sure to watch out for beartraps- if you get caught, tha thing will know. Just a forewarning.”

 

Chanyeol didn't offer him a response, sighing, but making haste- eyes and ears alert as he headed towards the cabin as instructed- narrowly, he avoided a beartrap- trepidation crawling down his spine, but no sign of a heartbeat. The latch on the chest was odd- requiring Chanyeol to struggle, fumble loudly with it for seconds too long before reaching inside, cheering internally before returning to Baekhyun as instructed, laying the small toolbox down beside him.

 

Baekhyun made pause to glance at his findings, a smile gracing his face as he reached for it- rifling through it for the tools he needed.

 

“An entire repair kit, huh? Aren't you lucky,” it was dry, but he seemed pleased.

 

“Help me out here, do exactly what I'm doing, but _don't_ fuck it up. It will give away our location and set back our progress.”

 

Albeit more slowly, and much less efficiently by extension, Chanyeol assisted him- clumsy, but glad to be of help, if only barely.

 

“Dae just finished a generator somewhere else. Soo is either working on one now, or kiting the killer. Listen carefully,” Baekhyun muttered, the working of the generator gradually increasing in volume, three sets of cylinders pumping in and out of the machine at full speed, with the fourth well on it's way.

 

Of course, Chanyeol slipped- earning a blast of sparks, and a loud, resounding boom. The speed of the last cylinder decreasing dramatically.

 

“Damnit, Park. You fucking blew it, he's probably headed this way now.” He muttered, irritation evident, resignation clear, actions speeding up, Chanyeol withdrawing his hands to glance around before the sound of the generator starting up rang through the air, the lights above it coming to life.

 

Baekhyun sighed in relief, wiping sweat from his brow, but was soon on the move once more- slowly walking towards what appeared to be a large set of gates, crouching around the corner of the fence bordering the entryway- watching and listening carefully, before the sound of another generator coming to life repeated further off.

 

Not seconds letter, the gate near them buzzed and rang out to signify that it had successfully been powered- the same occurring across from them, at the opposite side of the map.

 

Baekhyun darted out from their hiding spot and yanked down the lever for the generator powering the gate, eyes shut in concentration.

 

“ _What's happening_?” Chanyeol murmured quietly, unease clinging to his form.

 

“We're escaping,” He stated plainly, before seeing it fit to elaborate further, “We repaired five generators, and the generators power the gates.”

 

“Oh… That's… That's it? It's over?” He wasn't disappointed, but rather was relieved- but confusion weighed heavily upon him.

 

“Yeah. That's it,” He began, “For now.”

 

Chanyeol frowned, opening his mouth to ask for clarification, but the familiar sound of a heartbeat found his ears. He froze.

 

“Baekhyun. Baekhyun, he's coming. He's coming this way! What do I- _We_ do?!” He panicked, the beating growing louder, his own heart rate increasing in tandem.

 

“We shut up. The gate is almost open.”

 

“Baekhyun! I see him- he's. Oh _fuck_ oh fuck-”

 

“Five seconds, Chanyeol, just hang on.”

 

Baekhyun felt sweat drip down his temple, confusion morphing his face when the heartbeat, previously loud in his own ears, faded.

 

Along with Chanyeol's exclamations of fear and uneven, panicked breathing

 

“...Chanyeol?”

 

Realization dawned on him just as the gates cleared, opening automatically, and Baekhyun darted through, _hoping_ that Chanyeol would make it in time.

 

But he made pause before he crossed the barrier, against his better judgement, wincing and frowning deeply when the sound of a bear trap going off, alongside a pained yelp, echoed through the clearing.

 

Filled with dread, Baekhyun's heart sank- they were so _so_ close.

 

But Chanyeol was scared. Chanyeol was _terrified_. Thrown into a world which he had never known and told to fend for himself, with only a small team of experienced, but short-tempered people to offer him guidance.

 

Baekhyun's ability to empathize set in- creeping back towards the entryway and scrubbing a hand over his face in frustration when the glowing sillouhette revealed that he had escaped the trap, but had been hit- injured as soon as he broke free.

 

Kyungsoo would tell him to go- they'd been in this sick game long enough to know that sometimes… You had to rationalize. Had to be selfish, or risk losing your own life. If there wasn't an 80% chance of success, it by default wasn't worth playing hero.

 

But then again, none of those circumstances had involved Chanyeol, had they?

 

Another cry rang out, and Baekhyun cursed to himself before sprinting towards the source- frowning heavily when he realized Chanyeol had been picked up. Moving quickly, he got as close as he could without being detected, waiting for the killer to hook him, and then hopefully leave to search for _him_ \- granting Baekhyun the narrow opportunity to take him off of it.

 

But it never came, Chanyeol putting up a struggle, and a dull thud sounded alongside two groans instead. He'd far surpassed his expectations- successfully wiggling free and stunning the killer in the process. One second Chanyeol was on the ground, and the next he was booking it back to the gateway, Baekhyun following his lead, the killer gaining on them, but not before they made it to the exit gates.

 

They ran through together, aware that Kyungsoo and Jongdae had escaped through the opposite set of gates.

 

The trial was over.

 

They ran through the fields, what could scarcely be defined as reality fading away into nothingness.

  


When Chanyeol opened his eyes again, he was at the edge of a large clearing with a bonfire in it's center- but his exhaustion was gone. His pain had disappeared entirely- for a split second, he panicked, because what if _Baekhyun_ had disappeared, too?

 

“Relax, Park.”

 

He jumped, spinning around to find the source of the familiar voice- shock evident on his face, followed by elation. Relief washed through him, and somehow, his mind felt at ease, too- not thinking any better of it before closing the distance between them and _attempting_ to pull him into a hug.  
  
Instead, he embraced air, Baekhyun ducking his reach and taking a few steps back- confusion evident in his face, eyebrows drawn together.  
  
“Sorry,” Chanyeol tried, sheepishly, and Baekhyun’s shoulders seemed to relax, emitting a soft sigh.  
  
“I didn’t- Expect that. Don’t just… Lunge at people. You’re gonna give one of these guys a heart attack. Let’s… Go sit down in front of the fire, yeah?”

 

Chanyeol's eyes swept over his surroundings after he was seated, unconsciously leaning towards the intense heat of the bonfire, watching the flames dance, the sound of idle chatter surrounding him- quiet voices, drowned out by crackling sounds, and the scent of woodsmoke lingering in his nostrils.  
  
“You probably want an explanation, right?” An unfamiliar voice sounded beside him- and he nodded silently, a frown on his mouth.  
  
“Well, I can’t say I have anything cohesive, or something that will make a lot of sense to you, but… Think of this like…. A sort of limbo.”  
  
“Limbo? Like betw-”  
  
“Yeah. Something like that. Basically, you can’t die. Not permanently. Death… Isn’t death, here. You can think of… The thing you just came out of, as a game, of sorts. Like… A trial- that’s what it’s called.”

Chanyeol perked up at that, “A game?”  
  
“Yeah, but… Don’t get too excited. This isn’t a fun game you want to share with your friends- or maybe it is. I don’t know your friends, but… Every so often, four of us get sort of… Called upon to participate. Seems to be randomized, mostly. And you don’t have a choice, either- if you get called out, you _have_ to go- Because you’ll be forced to go, one way or another.

 

Now… You can think of this like a sort of… Really fucked game of hide and seek.”  
  
Chanyeol’s eyebrows furrowed at that, finally raising his head enough to look at the person talking to him, head tilting to the side- It was… The guy- _Soo_ , the one they had rescued from the hook earlier.

“Yeah, hide and seek. Except the seeker is a serial killer,” Kyungsoo chuckled lowly, shoulders shaking with mirth- seemingly amused by his revelation.

 

“And you- Us, the _hiders_ are prey. We get hunted down like animals- they find our tracks, listen for audio cues to give away our location, our job is to survive. Is to move quickly, and quietly, and to… Always move forward. You can’t afford to freeze up, not even for a second. Just… Keep moving.”  
  
“I don’t think I like this game,” Chanyeol deadpanned, something tugging in his chest when the other man cracked a smile.  
  
“Just like they listen, we need to listen, too- chainsaws, music, screeches, bells- but most commonly, heartbeats. Whenever the killer is within a close enough range that they can see us, there will be some sort of sound to reveal that they’re near. Whenever they’re stalking us, tailing us, usually a heartbeat will drum in your ears.”

 

“Their motivation is bloodlust and to please the…” A pause, “Baekhyun, and a few of the other guys, call it the _entity_ \- It’s basically… This shapeless… Shadowy _thing._ Kind of like… The deity of this realm. It dictates each circumstance, and wants to torture and kill us, essentially. We're… Sacrifices. Stuck in a perpetual loop of fear, pain… And death.”

 

“We enter this as a team, but in the end… You can't afford to allow your emotions to dictate you. If that means you need to run, you run. If that means you need to abandon someone to stay alive, you abandon them. Keep in mind that they'd do the same. Don't… Be sentimental. That's the biggest mistake you can make.”

 

“Lastly, each killer has some sort of ability or tool that differentiates them. You'll..  Encounter some terrifying shit, but, like I said, just move forward.

 

 _Always_ move forward.”


End file.
